Synergy of the Pack
by MaryRoyale
Summary: When Remus loses Tonks in the war, his friends in the Order rally around him to help raise Teddy. When Narcissa and Draco want to be a part of Andromeda's and Teddy's lives, what will Remus do? How will Lucius cope with his son consorting with blood traitors, werewolves, and Muggleborn? Remus/Hermione/Draco triad. One-shot.


_A/N: This story exists because of Faerieflightz on tumblr. She suggested the triad Remus/Hermione/Draco to me, which I had never once considered. Then I spent awhile trying to figure out_ _ **how**_ _it would even happen, and eventually I went to my Falcons for help. So thanks to a long convo in messaging and Miss Faerieflightz… you get this. You're welcome._

 _ **The 2016 Monthly Prompt List Challenge—**_ _Prompt #26- Family_

 _ **Acrostic-y Challenge of Chapter Titles II—**_ _The Letter 'S' and surprise_

 _Word Count: 3068_

/\/\/\/\/\

 _June 2000, Tonks' Residence_

Somehow the war changed everything. It wasn't the big things that should have changed like blood prejudices and sentient beings' rights. It was little things… like showing up at Andromeda Tonks' house to drop off Teddy for the full moon and finding Narcissa and Draco Malfoy having tea.

"Remus! Come join us," Andromeda commanded.

"Grandmère!" Teddy called and held his arms out.

"How are you, my darling?" Andromeda asked as she took Teddy and kissed his cheek.

"Who are they?" Teddy asked, pointing at Narcissa and Draco.

"It's rude to point, Teddy," Remus reminded him.

"Sorry Daddy," Teddy murmured. He looked up at his grandmother. "Grandmère? Who are they?"

"This is my sister Narcissa and her son Draco," Andromeda explained. She glanced up at Remus who was still standing in the doorway with his hands hanging limply at his sides. "Remus? Come sit by me, please."

Despite the short time he had had with Dora, Remus knew that wasn't a request. He sat gingerly in the chair next to Andromeda and tried to avoid staring at the Malfoys. He accepted the cup of tea that Andromeda handed him and tried to make himself busy adding sugar and milk.

"Mr. Lupin, it is perhaps fortunate that you are here," Narcissa Malfoy said coolly.

He looked up from his tea to two sets of assessing eyes. "Oh yes?"

Narcissa glanced at her son and then turned back to Remus. "We would like to get to know Teddy, if that would be amenable to you."

"Get to know Teddy?" Remus echoed her in surprise. He turned to look at Andromeda who nodded.

A fierce surge of protectiveness washed through Remus. His fingers tightened on his teacup and he had to consciously loosen his grip before he shattered Andromeda's china.

"We could come here," Draco offered quietly. "Visit him with Aunt Andromeda in attendance."

Remus let out a breath that he didn't realize he'd been holding. "That might work," he replied.

Teddy managed to turn his hair platinum blond and his eyes silver-grey, completely oblivious to the tension in the room.

/\/\/\/\/\

 _January 2001, Lupin Residence_

At first, the steady throbbing of Remus' skull was so intense that he didn't realize someone was knocking at his door. Gingerly, he made his way to the door.

"Daddy!" Teddy cried joyfully and tried to leap into his father's arms.

"Whoa! Watch out there, Teddy," Draco cried as he tried to compensate for the shift in weight.

Both Remus and Draco moved at the same time to catch Teddy and they ended up in an awkward almost-hug. Draco flushed deeply, but he made sure that Remus had hold of Teddy before he pulled away.

"We don't use people as launching pads, pup, remember?" Remus reminded his son.

Teddy's face scrunched up in thought and then he nodded. "I made Mi fall down," he said.

"Me?" Draco repeated in confusion.

"Hermione. She's Teddy's godmother," Remus explained. "She and Harry take Teddy on their days off. In fact, next week I'll need you to take Teddy to Hermione. I've got an appointment at the Werewolf Support Services office at the Ministry."

Draco stared at him for a minute. "Granger doesn't like me," he stated finally.

Remus snorted. "She'll manage for Teddy's sake."

/\/\/\/\/\

The early morning edition of the Daily Prophet crumpled in Lucius Malfoy's hand until the front page headline was only barely visible.

 **MALFOY HEIR IN TORRID AFFAIR WITH WEREWOLF!**

Normally, Lucius would have laughed himself sick over such a lurid, sensational headline, secure in the knowledge that his only son and heir would never lower himself in such a way—dragging the name of Malfoy through the gutters. In this particular case, the Daily Prophet gleefully displayed a pictorial on page 4 of Draco embracing Remus Lupin with a small child between them.

When Narcissa had informed him that she planned on reconnecting with Andromeda and what remained of her family Lucius had acquiesced gracefully. He had known how much the separation from Andromeda had hurt his wife, and he had been pleased to know that at least Narcissa could have this again, after everything.

It had _never_ occurred to Lucius that Draco could ever shame his family this way.

Perhaps this was Draco's way of acting out? Merlin knew that the boy had been through hell during the war. Lucius sighed and let his head fall back against the chair. This was the last thing the Malfoy family needed.

/\/\/\/\/\

In the aftermath of the war and the loss of Tonks, Remus had been left reeling. He needed to grieve for the loss of his wife, but he also needed to be a parent to Teddy. His lycanthropy could have impacted his ability to be a good father except for Andromeda and the former members of the Order.

Kingsley and Bill had been there for him and let him talk as much as he needed to about Dora. Harry and Hermione had stepped up to the plate and taken on the mantle of godfather and godmother with determination. Andromeda had insisted on being an active participant in her grandson's life. Together, they had formed a kind of family centred around Teddy and Remus.

It wasn't unusual for any one of them to pick up Teddy and then drop him off at another Order member's house. Teddy had more Aunties and Uncles than your average young wizard.

Teddy's absolute favourite was his Aunt Mi. She always smelled good and she gave the best hugs and she answered all of his questions—even the ones that no one else would answer. Teddy was convinced that his Aunt Mi was the smartest person in the world; maybe even smarter than his dad. Daddy would always laugh and agree with him. Aunt Mi would blush bright red and tell them both that they were _incorrigible_. Teddy wasn't sure why, but when Aunt Mi did that Daddy would smirk and look proud. He figured that being _incorrigible_ must be a pretty good thing.

"Mi!" Teddy exclaimed happily when she opened the door.

Immediately, he turned his hair into a curly, bushy mess and changed his eyes to cinnamon brown. Aunt Mi laughed at him before she spotted Teddy's cousin Draco. The laughter died on her tongue and she blinked at Cousin Draco in surprise.

"Malfoy." Aunt Mi looked from Teddy to Draco and frowned. "I don't understand."

"Remus asked me to bring Teddy to you," Draco explained stiffly.

"Remus?" Hermione's voice rose and Draco flushed.

"Daddy had a 'pointment, Mi," Teddy reminded her.

Hermione nodded and flashed a warm smile at Teddy.

"I forgot about that," Hermione said. She held out her arms for Teddy, but Draco held onto the boy tightly. She raised an eyebrow at him and put her hands on her hips. "Problem, Malfoy?"

"He's got a habit of jumping. Remus said he'd knocked you down before. If it's all right with you, I'll just take him inside," Draco said.

Hermione shrugged and then moved to the side. "Come on in," she replied drily.

Once Teddy was settled in the living room with a set of sturdy blocks, Hermione saw Draco out. On her doorstep, he turned back to her and straightened his spine, lifting his chin slightly.

"Thank you, for helping Aunt Andromeda and Remus," Draco said with a stiff formality that made Hermione want to roll her eyes.

Instead she grinned at him and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Welcome to the family, Malfoy," she said cheerfully when she pulled away after a moment.

Draco stood on the stoop for several long minutes with a gobsmacked expression on his face.

/\/\/\/\/\

 **WAR HEROINE HERMIONE GRANGER CAUGHT IN CLINCH WITH MALFOY HEIR:**

 **MUGGLEBORN WITCH TO BE NEXT MALFOY MATRIARCH?**

Lucius let his head fall to the table with a resounding _thunk_. The accompanying pictures showed a happy, vulgarly demonstrative Granger, clutching his only son to her Mudblood bosom. What on earth was Draco _thinking_? The werewolf lover had been truly awful, but at least there wasn't a chance of Draco marrying him. Or was there?

Pushing against the table, Lucius got to his feet. Draco might be willing to throw away his future, but Lucius was damned if he was going to allow his son to do that.

/\/\/\/\/\

Few places were willing to employ werewolves, even with the new initiatives from the Ministry of Magic. It had been after another rejection that Remus had gone to Grimmauld Place to pick up Teddy and ended up drowning his sorrows in Firewhiskey and complaining to a sympathetic Harry. The next week an angry, determined Hermione that had found Remus a job with the International Confederation of Wizards' London office.

It was impossible to stop the silly smile that overcame him every time he thought about the little witch. She was so fierce and loyal and just… Hermione. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. _Get your mind off of her, you broken down old cur_. _She's too good for you_.

"Mr Lupin," a cool voice drawled from his office doorway.

Quickly, Remus turned around. Standing just inside his office was Lucius Malfoy who somehow managed to convey both haughty disdain and an air of resignation at the same time.

"Mr Malfoy," Remus replied slowly. He didn't know why Malfoy the Elder had come to see him at work, but he assumed it couldn't be good. He remembered that Draco was supposed to baby sit Teddy for him tomorrow. "Is Draco well?"

Lucius Malfoy drew himself up and glared at Remus who was starting to wonder if he was perhaps missing something.

" _My son_ is none of your concern," he sniffed. "In fact, that is why I've come to see you."

"You've come to see me about Draco?" Remus said in surprise.

It was impossible to miss the way Malfoy's eye twitched every time he called Draco by his given name. Remus' inner Marauder felt the urge to use Draco's given name a few more times just to watch Lucius quiver with rage. The part of him that was a mature, responsible adult wondered what the hell was going on.

"I want you to stop seeing Draco," Malfoy snapped furiously.

Draco had become an integral part of the network that helped him take care of Teddy. In fact, his son had grown inordinately fond of his older cousin and looked forward to Wednesdays when Draco usually babysat him.

"Why?" Remus asked with a frown.

"He is the Malfoy heir," Malfoy growled. "He has responsibilities and obligations to his House."

"Okay…" Remus was growing more confused by the second.

"You need to leave my son alone," Malfoy insisted. "I want you to break it off with him. I'm willing to pay you if that's what it takes."

"What?" Remus stared at the Malfoy Patriarch. "I'm sorry… are you… what exactly are you saying?"

"I think I've made my position rather clear," Malfoy retorted stiffly. "I want you to end your relationship with my son."

Remus leaned back against his desk because he wasn't certain if his legs could hold him up at the moment. He felt the urge to break into gales of hysterical laughter, but he doubted that Lucius Malfoy would appreciate it. The impudent part of him, the part that he thought had died with James, reared its head. He crossed his arms across his chest and cocked his hip.

"What business is it of yours whom Draco is shagging? He's 20 years old and a wizard grown," Remus drawled and then he smirked at Malfoy.

"He is the Malfoy heir," Lucius choked out.

"That may well be, but he's quite charming when he wants to be," Remus countered. That bit was true enough—Draco _could_ be devilishly charming… when it suited him.

Emotion seemed to overcome Malfoy. He made a sort of choked sound which Remus assumed was either inarticulate rage or righteous indignation. Then he turned sharply on his heel and stalked out of Remus' office.

A moment later his supervisor poked his head in.

"Are you alright, Lupin?" His supervisor asked cautiously.

"Yes, thank you," Remus replied with a tight smile.

/\/\/\/\/\

As a junior member of the DMLE, Hermione was used to facing off against incredibly powerful wizards. Even still, Hermione normally considered Lucius Malfoy to be an intimidating wizard. The current moment was anything but normal.

"I beg your pardon?" Hermione's voice rose incredulously.

"I want you to stop sleeping with Draco," Mr. Malfoy told her in an imperious tone that made her long to smack him.

"You want me to… Mr. Malfoy, are you well?" Hermione demanded.

He huffed at her indignantly. "I assure you, Miss Granger that I am in the best of health."

"Is this some sort of joke? I swear to Merlin, if that is you Fred Weasley, this is _not_ amusing," Hermione snapped.

"There you are, love."

Remus walked into Hermione's office and moved to stand next to her. He slipped an arm around her waist and tugged her against his side.

"Remus, I expect this sort of thing from Harry or the twins, but not you," Hermione protested as she tried to wiggle away from him. Remus arm tightened until she stopped wiggling and glared up at him.

"Mr. Malfoy here wants us to stop seeing Draco. He feels we're keeping him from his duties and obligations," Remus murmured just loud enough for Mr. Malfoy to overhear them.

The smirk on his face and the humour in his eyes was very un-Remus-like, or at least the Remus that Hermione knew. She had a sudden feeling that Sirius Black and James Potter would have recognized that look immediately. Worry began to gnaw at her belly.

"But, we aren't-," Hermione began only to be stopped by Remus placing a finger over her lips.

"Of course we aren't trying to keep Draco from his responsibilities, love. I've told Mr. Malfoy that," Remus said cheerfully. "I told him that we couldn't dream of giving up our beloved Draco. Why, we wouldn't be whole without him."

Hermione stared at Remus and then turned to look at Mr. Malfoy who was turning a dark shade of pink.

"We wouldn't?" Hermione echoed faintly.

"Mr. Lupin," Mr. Malfoy ground out between clenched teeth. "Do you absolutely refuse to see reason?"

Remus straightened at that and frowned at Mr. Malfoy. "I think you're doing Draco a disservice, Mr. Malfoy. He is an intelligent wizard and an honourable man. He's been doing his best to live up to all of these responsibilities and duties that you seem to feel he's shirking. Trust Draco, Mr. Malfoy. I don't think he'll let you down."

Hermione glanced at Remus and saw a muscle ticking in his jaw. She blinked and then turned to Lucius Malfoy.

"We love Draco," Hermione said firmly. "He's ours now, and you can't take him from us."

"What the bloody hell is going on?"

Everyone turned to see Draco standing in the doorway staring at all of them in consternation. Hermione wondered absently if she were dreaming as she watched Remus stride across the room, sweep Draco into his arms… arms that she herself had had more than one fantasy over, and kiss him thoroughly. When Remus let go of Draco he appeared slightly dazed. Remus was staring at Hermione intently, and it took her a moment to realize what he wanted.

"Draco," Hermione cried and flew across the room to fling herself into his arms. She wasn't quite brazen enough to plaster her lips to his, but she hugged him tightly.

Apparently, her bravery wasn't required since Draco managed to bend her back over his arm before he proceeded to kiss her until she was dizzy. Electrical energy sizzled between them and it was only the desperate need for oxygen that forced Hermione to reluctantly pull back. Her knees were weak and she weaved slightly before Remus' warmth was pressed against her side again and she was firmly sandwiched between him and Draco.

"I'm not sure what you came here hoping to accomplish, Father, but I'm rather hoping that you listen to Remus and Hermione. I belong to them and they aren't giving me up," Draco said firmly.

Mr. Malfoy's mouth was opening and closing soundlessly and he was now approaching a deep purple hue. Finally, he seemed to find his tongue.

"We'll discuss this later, Draco," he said at last.

Once he was gone, Draco turned to face the both of them with a quirked brow.

"Do I even want to know?" He asked with a sigh.

"Apparently, your father is as bad as Mrs. Weasley about the things she reads in the Daily Prophet," Hermione grumbled. "It would be nice, if just once, people wouldn't assume I'm a jumped-up, Mudblood tart who's after every Chosen One, Champion, and pureblood scion I see."

Remus' eyes flashed amber. "Don't," he growled.

Hermione shrugged. "You know that's what they say."

"It doesn't mean we have to like it," Draco countered.

Remus nudged Draco with his elbow. "I knew there was a reason I loved you."

"Oh, knock it off. My father's gone. He's probably run home to complain to my mother," Draco snapped irritably.

"Narcissa will set him straight." Hermione attempted to soothe Draco.

Draco snorted. "My mother actually likes both of you. She might just decide to make your little joke reality."

"That's not funny, Draco," Hermione said with a frown.

Draco smirked at the both of them. "I wasn't the one who decided to re-enact some scene from some godawful wizarding romance novel. Where the hell did you come up with all of that?"

Remus shrugged. "I just made it up as I went. Except the bit where I told your father to trust you. I meant that part."

"I meant what I said too," Hermione added. When both men stared at her, she flushed. "That you're ours."

His ears turned pink. "Yeah?"

"Family," Hermione blurted out.

Draco's shoulders fell slightly. "Family," Draco agreed in a stilted voice.

"No," Remus countered in a rough voice. He took the back of Draco's neck in his hand and gave him a bruising kiss. Then he turned to Hermione and pulled her against him. "Pack," he breathed against her lips, his eyes glinting amber.

Hermione stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Pack," she agreed softly.


End file.
